Alabama woman shot in stomach charged in death of her own unborn child

By Gary Dinges gdinges@gatehousemedia.com

Friday

Jun 28, 2019 at 1:11 PM

An Alabama woman who lost her unborn child after being shot in the stomach has been charged with manslaughter.

A grand jury in Jefferson County issued the indictment against Marshae Jones, 27, according to CNN. The local district attorney said he has not yet decided whether to take the unusual case to trial.

Jefferson County is home to Birmingham, Alabama's largest city.

CNN reports that Jones got into a fight with another woman at a Dollar General store in December. At the time, she was five months pregnant.

The fight escalated and the other woman pulled a gun, allegedly fearing for her safety, police said. The shooter was not charged with a crime.

"It was the mother of the child who initiated and continued the fight which resulted in the death of her own unborn baby," Pleasant Grove police Lt. Danny Reid told AL.com. "The investigation showed that the only true victim in this was the unborn baby."

Alabama elected officials have made news recently for stepping up efforts to protect unborn children. The state recently passed the toughest abortion law in the country, which would pretty much entirely ban the procedure.

The Yellowhammer Project, which defends women accused of abortion-related crimes, is among the groups speaking out against Jones' indictment.

"Marshae Jones is being charged with manslaughter for being pregnant and getting shot while engaging in an altercation with a person who had a gun," Amanda Reyes, the group's executive director, said in a written statement obtained by Vox. "The state of Alabama has proven yet again that the moment a person becomes pregnant their sole responsibility is to produce a live, healthy baby and that it considers any action a pregnant person takes that might impede in that live birth to be a criminal act."